Showbiz
Tobi Akingbade
Aug 06, 2020
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Ashton Kutcher has found himself in some hot water again for responding to the backlash he received for running to the defence of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and its host, after it found itself embroiled in a lot of controversies.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, here is a quick recap:
In mid-July, BuzzFeed published allegations of "racism, fear and intimidation" committed by senior producers on the show towards other staff members.
They followed this up with a second article which included allegations of "rampant" sexual harassment.
As a result, production company WarnerMedia removed some staff from the show, while DeGeneres sent an email to others in which she wrote "I'm committed to ensuring this does not happen again".
The allegations detailed in BuzzFeed aren't aimed at DeGeneres herself, although one interviewee reportedly said:
If [Ellen] wants to have her own show and have her name on the show title, she needs to be more involved to see what's going on
Rumours that DeGeneres was aware of a "toxic workplace culture" on her show have circulated for years.
Now, Kutcher has joined a long list of famous faces who have taken position in the battlefield to war against DeGeneres’ critics and it really has not gone down so well.
He said:
It seems Kutcher may have missed the point, and failed to read the room, because the allegations were not aimed at the host, rather the workplace.
These social media users summed it up perfectly, but Kutcher had a response for them:
By speaking out, some people feel that Kutcher invalidated the experiences of others by 'centering' himself in a conversation that did not even concern him in the first place.
Just because Kutcher had a great time visiting the show doesn’t soundly mean that the allegations are void.
When told this on Twitter Kutcher began responding to the backlash and ended up digging an even bigger hole for himself.
His comebacks did not stop people from standing their ground:
Kutcher is not alone though. He joins the likes of Kevin Hart, Scooter Braun, Diane Keaton, Samantha Ronson and DeGeneres’s wife Portia de Rossi in defending the comedian.
However, several former celebrity guests and other associates of DeGeneres have spoken out against her, including Back to the Future actor Lea Thompson, Everyone Loves Raymond actor Brad Garrett, Gilmore Guys podcast host Kevin T. Porter and Nikkie de Jager, the YouTuber better known as NikkieTutorials.
Tom Majercak, a bodyguard who protected DeGeneres at the 2014 Oscars ceremony, has also accused her of being "cold, sly and demeaning".
Again, the allegations that have been raised aren’t actually against DeGeneres's personality or character, rather the workplace that is provided behind-the-scenes of her show.
indy100 has reached out to Ashton Kutcher for comment.
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